


Death of a Princess

by orphan_account



Category: Fire Emblem Series, Fire Emblem: If | Fire Emblem: Fates
Genre: Angst, Blood, Character Deaths, F/M, Fire Emblem Fates AU, Multi, other tags likely to be added when more chapters are added
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-06-02
Updated: 2016-07-30
Packaged: 2018-07-11 20:06:20
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 7
Words: 16,182
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7068160
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>What if Corrin, in an attempt to make peace between her families, ends up sacrificing herself after making that crucial decision in chapter 6? Would there be a war? Would there be the peace which she longs for? Could her siblings get along for her sake?... Could they ever get her back by their sides?...</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Loss

**Author's Note:**

> Well... This goes slightly off-plot from Fates' storyline right from the beginning. It is taken here that Corrin ends up choosing her family in Nohr, simply because of how she knew them better than her Hoshidan siblings, so that is normal. It does, however, have that some of the child units already have been born and are living in their deeprealms by the point that this story begins, with that being one of the plot differences. I'm not going to point any other differences out for now though.

“Traitor… You are a traitor!” Corrin flinched as she heard the voice of the high prince of Hoshido – her older brother by birthright – call out above all others. “You betray your mother, your _true_ family, your _**homeland,**_ and all for a bunch of Nohrians who kidnapped you as a child?!”

There was a collective rage from the Hoshidan army, the strongest of it all coming from her blood siblings. Ryoma was poised with Raijinto, ready to strike her down. Hinoka looked both distraught on account of her wide eyes, but also ready to fight judging by how her grasp of her naginata tightened. Takumi's eyes were narrowed as he began aiming his Fujin Yumi directly at her. Sakura was tearing up, clinging onto Yukimura's arm as though her life depended on it.

As she felt a huge pit forming in her stomach through regret of her decision, Xander's hand upon her shoulder was hardly the reassurance which she needed, but it was more than enough to give her the confidence to speak up. “I… I am not a traitor, Ryoma. Now, I won't say it again. Lay down your weapons and you can leave with your lives. I don't want this to spiral into war-!”

“You _started_ this war when you killed our mother!” Takumi had ended up shooting at Corrin, and the arrow would have pierced her armour If it weren't for Leo retaliating with his Brynhildr and intercepting the arrow's path. “And I'll have you know… Next time the arrow won't miss.”

By now, the over-protective nature of the Nohrian royals when it came to Corrin was beginning to kick in. Ryoma had gone to attack her, but Xander was now using his Siegfried to defend her. Camilla seemed infuriated over Hinoka also wanting to attack Corrin, and was doing whatever she could to keep the Hoshidan princess from carrying out such a task. Leo was attacking whoever he could of the Hoshidans so long as they were close enough to him. Elise was yelling out to Corrin from a distance that no matter what, she would be there for her.

But seeing her older brothers fighting together so fiercely… High prince of Hoshido versus crown prince of Nohr… It was heartbreaking.

The sword in her hand… Yato. The sword meant to be wielded by the one who would bring about peace. “… Perhaps I can bring about peace now. But I can do it without my weapons.”

By the point that she had discarded her sword and dragonstone on the floor, Jakob, after having been separated at the Bottomless Canyon, had arrived on the battlefield. The butler wanted to call out to her, but Leo held out his arm to stop him. “Something is on her mind… I wouldn't speak to her right now.”

Corrin was now slowly walking over to Xander and Ryoma, who were still fiercely battling over whether who the princess truly belonged to. As she did so, her hand reached behind her back and under her cloak as she began to unfasten her armour. Seeing such strange actions had brought all of her other Hoshidan and Nohrian siblings to an abrupt stop in their yelling, crying, and fighting, and they were more than confused.

“Stop this… Stop fighting!” Corrin's words were lost to the older brothers – they were far too furious with one another. With that, she turned around briefly and gave a teary smile at the people who were watching her.

Xander's sword was pulled back once more to be swung at Ryoma's neck. Ryoma's weapon was ready to cut through Xander's leg, or at the very least his horse.

Neither weapon hit the intended targets, and the princes only realised as they heard a deafening scream from the one they both called their younger sister.

“I… t-told you both… Stop f-fighting...” Corrin spluttered, blood quickly coating her body. Her eyes glazed over as the swords fell down to the ground. “No… war… N-Need… ugh… peace...” Her hand slowly and shakily moved to where her heart was, before shedding a tear, aware that she was now only moments away from death.

“ _Big sister!”_ Sakura and Elise both ran over to Corrin as she slumped down onto the grass beneath her so that they could try to heal her wounds.

Jakob's feet were rooted to the ground. He had the capability of healing… But seeing the princess which he would remain ever-loyal to dying on the ground, having intercepted not one, but two blows from the strongest of her two sets of siblings… He just couldn't bring himself around into moving. If Corrin did die… How could he break the news to Flora and Felicia?! They were surely wanting to at least know that Corrin was safe…

“Xander… Ryoma… I-I'm so s-sorry for d-doing that...” The dragon princess' weak voice was the only thing which could be heard on the battlefield amongst the tears of her brothers and sisters. “I… can… see m-my mother… again...”

-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-

News of the battle between the Hoshidan and Nohrian royalty was quick to spread across both countries. The news that the sheltered Nohrian princess actually of Hoshidan descent had been killed by the crown princes whose arms that she had died in. She had been buried in the very place where she had died, the location marked with Yato and her cloak. It was declared there and then to be a crime to remove either. Both countries mourned over her – Nohr because of how she felt a part of the Royal family, Hoshido because of losing her so soon after learning of her existence and losing their queen.

In Nohr, just one week later, Xander had taken to isolating himself from his siblings and retainers, not daring to touch the sword which was covered in his adoptive sister's blood. He would, however, stare at it for hours on end. “Little princess… I am so sorry. I took your life when all that you wanted was peace.” And then he clenched his fists. “Father took your death as a declaration of war though. I may have to fight Ryoma again… I couldn't do that. Not after seeing your tears.”

His normally pristine curls in his hair were greasy and in quite a mess as he buried his face in his hands. He hadn't even mourned over his mother's death when he was a child this much… Corrin just… Meant too much to him. He had spent most of his free time with her when Garon had allowed it, and typically he would have to read to her when she was younger, or train her in the ways of sword combat more recently. _He could never do those things ever again._

Before he could have any more slightly nostalgic thoughts though, there was a knock upon the door. “Lord Xander… We need your help.” The crown prince slammed his fist down onto his desk, and watched as Siegfried moved a slight bit as he did so. Out of anyone who could have spoke to him… It had to be Laslow. It took a surprising amount of effort for him to just be able to walk over to the door, all due to his lack of doing almost anything for days. Once the door was opened, he simply gave his retainer a brief stare before directing his eyes towards the floor.

“What is it that you need my help for, Laslow? Could you have not asked for Camilla or Leo instead?”

Laslow shook his head, before clenching his fists. “No… I do not think that their inputs would be heard by your father.” And then, he pointed towards the maze of hallways leading to the throne room. “King Garon is wanting to execute Jakob for not fulfilling his duties and protecting Lady Corrin. At the moment, he is imprisoned… He ended up giving me these when me and Peri had to watch over him.” The retainer quickly pulled out two letters. It was definitely Jakob's handwriting, Xander could recognise it from the letters and messages he had received in the past over Corrin's condition when she was stuck at the Northern Fortress. “These… Are for his children, Dwyer and Kana. _His and_ _Corrin's sons_.”

That was a new revelation to Xander. Corrin had children – he had _nephews –_ but had never been informed? “What? But… Why are we not aware of their existence? It would have gone down on the Nohrian records, but no children of those names have ever been listed, let alone be noted down as royal!” Xander only knew about the information on the records due to the many times in which he had been tasked with removing the details of criminals and prisoners, and adding those who Garon had rewarded with Nohrian citizenship. “And _when_ exactly were these two born? Surely at least Camilla would have known and told everyone!”

For some reason, despite still being more than grieved over Corrin's death, just knowing that his beloved younger sister had children who could bring about the peace which she had so rightly desired was a reassurance.

“I do not know… Peri and I are set to be on watch again tonight. Perhaps if you requested, your father would allow you to take over these duties whilst the two of us attempt to deliver these letters to the deeprealms which the pair supposedly live in. That way, you could ask him yourself...”

-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-

In Hoshido, the situation was rather similar for Ryoma, but he didn't have the luxury of being able to stay in his own isolation. His mother was dead – he needed to step up to his role as the next ruler of the country.

“We spent so long looking for her… looking for our sister… And now she is gone, and on the same day as our mother too... Were all of our efforts in vain?” He was pacing back and forth in front of the throne at Castle Shirasagi, worrying that all of those years dedicated towards the search for Corrin were pointless. Hinoka and Sakura were there with him, hoping to see if they could get him to remain still for even just a moment, but weren't very successful.

What Ryoma _didn't_ know was that Sakura was also being crushed by the guilt of not being able to heal Corrin fast enough. She had made the best effort that she could, and judging by the look on Elise's face, she had too. But it was too late to save her… The damage caused through being stabbed by two legendary weapons was simply too much. The young princess would cry whenever she found herself alone because of it. Hearing Ryoma stressing out over it was close to bringing her to tears once more.

“Big brother… Big sister… I think I might go for a walk… Maybe find Takumi...” She whispered, using it as an excuse to just get away.

Just outside the castle, she ended up finding a tree which she could sit under so that she could mourn over her sister's death. She never knew her father or Corrin much, yet she had ended up losing them both before being able to know them better. She was glad to have Mikoto as a mother before she died though, or else she wouldn't have known about either of them…

Once her tears had began to clear up many minutes later, she then felt a shadow be cast over her. A small shadow, but a shadow nonetheless. Looking up, she noticed a strange creature – nothing like that lived within Hoshido.

“Excuse me… You happen to be the sister of Lady Corrin, don't you?”

Sakura had to hold back a scream when she heard a voice coming from the creature. “Y- Yes, b- but what are you?...” Sakura stood up, before biting her lips as she looked at the creature. Despite it being rather unique, and capable of speaking… It seemed friendly enough. “A- Are you… A b- bird?”

In the distance, Takumi, who had gone to visit the grave given to their mother, had also noticed the thing which was speaking to Sakura. It didn't _seem_ to be causing her any trouble, but he was cautious as he slowly made his way over to them, reaching to grab his Fujin Yumi just in case.

“I am Lilith… I once had a human form, and served as a friend and a stable girl for Lady Corrin when she was alive… But I am now in the form of an astral dragon – my normal form.”

“A-An astral dragon?...”

“Yes… Now that Corrin is deceased, I was not sure on what I was to do, until I remembered that she said that she wanted peace in one of her final breaths. As I was closer to here at the time which I remembered this, I decided that it would be best to visit-”

“Sakura, what is going on?” The princess flinched as she suddenly heard Takumi cut off Lilith, before looking over at him with wide eyes. “What is this… thing?” It took a few minutes for the Hoshidan prince to have his questions be answered, but he still had some wariness as he looked at the small dragon.

“I can prove what I have said to you, if you do not believe me… I can take you to a castle in the Astral Realm which Corrin lived in for a short while as she recovered from her injuries from a fight at the Bottomless Canyon. Very little time will pass here, and you can return to this very location afterwards.”

Neither royal had much of a chance to react or respond to what was said as their surroundings changed almost instantly. They ended up somewhere which looked _somewhat_ like Castle Shirasagi, but wasn't. There were trees similar to the one which Sakura had been sat on, and even the throne had some sort of similarity. In the middle though… There was a treehouse.

Sakura was in awe over the appearance of the castle, Takumi was startled over the fact that they had just been magically transported away from their home.

“To bring about the peace which Corrin begged for… I really need your help.”


	2. Execution

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Takumi and Sakura end up coming up with a plan, and they NEED to get into Nohrian territory for it to work.  
> Meanwhile, someone close to Corrin is set to be executed for not preventing her death...

Takumi looked around from the balcony of the strange castle's grounds alongside Sakura and Lilith, before resting his hands on his hips.“So there are dragon veins everywhere here which we can use to add buildings and such to the grounds... No wonder I have had such a strange feeling since Lilith brought us here...” He could feel a slight breeze on his face, which was surprisingly comforting.

Sakura was lost in gazing into the horizon as he spoke so he knew that he wasn't exactly being listened to by her at that moment, and Lilith was currently resting in her temple which was present. He sighed as he then turned around, and looked at the door to the treehouse.

It took a lot of courage to push the door open, and to step inside. This building was created for his dead older sister, so perhaps he could find out anything about her life in Nohr when he looked around. He was surprised at just how simplistic the room happened to be though.

He ended up seeing a table with a pot of tea and a few photo frames in the middle of the room, and he was surprised at the fact that the tea was piping hot. But then… He looked at one of the images. It seemed to be an illustration of sorts, and had four people drew upon it, each of them labelled.

“Mama Corrin, papa Jakob, big brother Dwyer and little brother Kana...” Then he looked at the corner of the image, and saw some handwriting which he presumed was Corrin's. “Kana drew this on his seventh birthday. I wish I could leave the fortress to see him...” Takumi was confused as he read the words out, before realising what this child's drawing meant.

Quickly, he ran outside and took hold of Sakura's arm in order to show her. She seemed a bit startled as he dragged her inside, and then he picked up the image once more. “Sakura… Look at this for a moment.” As his sister examined the image, he continued to look at what was present in the room. A bed, a bookshelf, a few crates which seemed to be filled with a few items of Corrin's clothes, and there were even shelves which had food upon them.

“Takumi… You don't think that this means that… Corrin was a mother?” She looked at the drawing, before sighing. “I guess that the brothers on it lived in a deeprealm… I mean, Corrin wasn't much older than you, was she? She couldn't possibly have a child at least seven years old at her age… And this Jakob who is mentioned… I think that was the man who broke down on the battlefield when big sister did die...”

The two siblings remained silent for a moment, before they both put everything back where it was. “We should be going back home now. Time may not flow at home whilst we are here, but it feels as though we have been apart from Ryoma and Hinoka for quite a few hours now.”

-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-

“Lady Corrin and myself… Despite knowing of the potential repercussions of us having any sort of non-professional relationship… We had actually been engaged for about two years by the time which she died.” Jakob looked down at his hands as he found himself being questioned over his relationship with Corrin. “I have a feeling that it was because of her more… dragon-like features which meant that both times she fell pregnant with our sons the time passed rather rapidly… Both of them were born within a week. Nobody noticed because of that… We had to quickly send them to two different deeprealms quickly once they were born though. We couldn't risk others knowing...” He looked distraught as he continued to stare down at his hands.

Xander frowned at he noticed just how broken Jakob seemed, grieving over Corrin's death as he waited for his impending execution. Earlier that day, once learning of the existence of Dwyer and Kana, the prince had finally neatened himself out and went to try and talk to Garon to free Jakob from this punishment. In response, the execution had gone forward from in a week's time to in three days.

“Jakob. I am aware of time flowing differently in the deeprealms. Just how old would your children be as of this moment?”

“Dwyer… Sixteen years old. Kana would be twelve.”

“Perhaps… Only if you permit it, we could bring your sons here. We may be able to at the very least buy you some time to spend with them, because it seems as though father is unwilling to call off your execution.”

Jakob remained silent, and was finding it impossible to come up with any sort of response. In a way, his sons were going to live a life somewhat similar to Corrin's – only knowing one of their true parents, and only for moments before said parent's death. “I… do not know, Lord Xander. Just… make sure that at the very least, they do not witness my passing.”

-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-

“You're not my papa,” A small boy stared up at Laslow, pouting his lips as he did so. “When I got told that a man was wanting to see me I thought that papa was finally coming to visit me, maybe with mama too… I've never met my mama before.”

Laslow knew that this had to be the younger of Corrin's hidden children, considering that Corrin had been kept inside the Northern fortress for the entirety of her life. So… Kana. It had to be Kana. That meant that Peri had to be having to visit Dwyer.

With a sigh, he pulled the letter which Jakob had wrote and knelt down. “This… is from your papa, Kana. I am so sorry… Your mama died a few days ago.”

Kana was shaking when he heard the word 'died', and quickly snatched the letter from the retainer's hand. “M- Mama...” Then, he looked at what was wrote on the letter. Laslow could just about read what was wrote on the paper upside down.

' _I am sorry to not be able to tell you in person, son, but a few days ago, your mother died to try and stop a war between Hoshido and Nohr. I was useless, and not able to save her… And because of that, I am having to pay the price, which is my life. Chances are, you may never be able to see me again. I was a failure as a husband, a father, and a butler. I hope that you do not dwell on losing me as much as you do your mother, her life was much more valuable than mine… Goodbye.'_

In response to what he had just read, Kana burst into tears and grabbed hold of Laslow's arm as he wept. “M- My papa isn't dead yet, is he?!”

“No… King Garon is wanting to kill him in three days-”

“Take me to my papa! I- I want to say bye to him myself! I want t-to give him these flowers before th-the mean king kills him...”

Laslow remained silent as he stood up, before holding out his hand. “My mother and father… They died when I was around your age, and I couldn't say goodbye to them. You at least should be allowed to have such a luxury...” Kana smiled as he wiped his puffy red eyes, and then took hold of Laslow's hand.

During the years in which he had served in Nohr as prince Xander's retainer… Nothing had hit closer to home than this. He missed his mother and his years dancing with her more than anything…

-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-

“Father...” Xander, Leo and Elise looked on worriedly as a boy who looked rather tired was stood in front of the prison cell which Jakob was waiting in. Peri had ended up dragging Dwyer to Castle Krakenburg, threatening to make him bleed if he didn't. “You've really messed up this time...” Elise was shocked beyond belief when she heard her nephew say that.

“ _Dwyer,_ this is _not_ how I taught you how to behave!” Jakob seemed particularly bitter over what had just been said, and he then turned his back whilst muttering to himself.

“You didn't even do what you taught me when mother was dying though, did you?… You always say that a butler's duty was to serve… so why didn't you do what you could to save her?...”

Elise snapped by that point, seeing father and son acting in such a hostile manner towards each other. “ _Stop this right now!”_ Leo had to put his hands on her shoulders as she stomped her foot. “If Corrin were still alive, she would probably be really upset seeing you both bicker like this! So just stop!”

Whilst that happened, Xander had been tapped upon the shoulder by Camilla, who was meant to be taking over the duty of watching over Jakob by that point, and she pulled him into the castle courtyard. Waiting there was Laslow, and there was a child asleep upon his shoulders. “Laslow here has ended up bringing our little, newly discovered nephew Kana to us! Isn't he such a darling, like Corrin?...” Camilla seemed very upset at mentioning Corrin, but she also seemed very happy as she reached up and ran her hand through Kana's hair.

“My apologies if you or Jakob did not wish to have him brought here, Lord Xander… but he was distraught when he received the news of Corrin's death and of Jakob's pending execution…” Laslow now seemed to be the one in tears. “It reminded me of when I lost my mother as a child...” Xander frowned, before watching as Camilla lifted Kana off the retainer's shoulders and held him in her arms. “I- I am sorry, Lord Xander… May I go to see Odin and Selena for a short while?”

Xander nodded, and watched as his retainer quickly ran across the courtyard. Then, his attention turned to the sleeping boy. He seemed so innocent and childlike, much younger than the twelve years old which Jakob had claimed that he was. But then again, Elise was much younger looking than she was too… On top of that, the boy had so many features similar to Corrin's, his blue scarf and pointy ears in particular. Camilla was already doting over him as she would Corrin too…

“Camilla… Leave Kana with me. He needs to rest. And perhaps it would be best if you sent Dwyer and Elise here also. I should be able to persuade father to allow the two to remain in the castle for a few days.

Thankfully, Garon did allow for both Dwyer and Kana to remain inside the castle, so long as they were accompanied by either Felicia, Flora, or one of the royal siblings if they dared leave the quarters which they had been allowed to reside in.

“So… You're my mama's older brother?...” Kana had woke up by the point in which Xander had sorted out the room, and the child was perched upon his shoulders. Dwyer was stood nearby, but he didn't seem to be paying much attention.

Xander nodded, before sighing. “Yes, I am your mama's older, adoptive brother… She has another older brother in Hoshido, but… It is dangerous for you to leave Nohr at the moment. The king has a close eye on you and your brother at the moment, so you need to make sure not to cause trouble…”

“Or else he will do what he is doing to father to us… I heard him say that… I was awake then...” Xander remained silent as Kana said that, before hearing the child burst into tears.

The next few days leading up to Jakob's execution… Were going to be a long few days.

-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-

The Hoshidan royal siblings were all staring at the Nohrian border guard who was stood before them in the ruined town centre where Mikoto had died, and where Corrin had obtained her dragon form mere hours before her death.

“Oh… Please do not hurt me, high prince Ryoma… I am just a poor, defenceless messenger for King Garon...” Her actions seemed suspicious as she seemed to force tears into her eyes and dropped her axe on the ground behind her. “All that his majesty said to relay is that if you were not to surrender within the next week, he is to declare war against you for the murder of his daughter-”

“His _kidnap victim_ you mean! Corrin was _our_ sister, a _Hoshidan_ princess! You go and tell your damn king that Hoshido will not comply with his demands!” Hinoka yelled, Ryoma nodding in agreement. Behind the two, Sakura and Takumi were stood looking at each other. They knew that a Nohrian messenger was set to arrive, and had ended up conjuring a quick plan together with both Orochi and Yukimura because of that. Hinoka and Ryoma weren't aware of the plan, but were set to be told once it was in action.

Takumi looked at his younger sister, and forced on a smile as she nodded. “Sakura and I wish to personally deliver this message.”

“What?!” Ryoma turned around and stared at the young prince and princess. “No, we have lost enough of our family, we are not having you-”

“P- Please, Ryoma… Yukimura and Orochi will explain everything...” Sakura held onto Takumi's arm, before she then smiled. “We'll be fine… We have a way to return home if everything turns sour...”

Ignoring any words of protest which the older two had, Takumi pushed past them holding Sakura's hand. “Charlotte, is it? Know that I don't trust you, but could you at the very least accompany us, our retainers, and our sister Azura to the Nohrian border? Sakura and I are to talk to the king ourselves.” That was when Hana, Subaki, Oboro and Hinata appeared from nearby, and a few moments after that, a rather distant looking Azura walked over to them. They had just been filled in on the plan, and almost straight away went to find the young pair.

Ryoma was quietly whispering to Hinoka now, looking at their younger siblings in concern. “I do not think we can get them to change their minds… But I guess that we must trust them. They are adults now in their own right, so we cannot dictate everything that they do...” He did, however, want his dear younger brother and youngest sister to be safe. There had to be a way… And he quickly found it.

“Hinoka, have you heard of a rebellion which has been taking place in Cheve?”

“Cheve? The place in which Garon _kidnapped_ our sister?!”

“Yes. I have heard of a rebellion against Nohr taking place there, led by a woman named Scarlet. If we can persuade Sakura and Takumi if we cannot dissuade them from travelling to Nohr to pass through Cheve, they should hopefully be able to make themselves a powerful ally to fight alongside them if worst comes to worst.” He looked at the ground, before looking at Hinoka. “We are going to have to do what we can here in Hoshido too… And hope that everything in this plan that the two apparently have goes well.”

“Well… I guess that we should tell them… Losing one sister and our mother is more than enough loss for me right now...”

-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-

“Why can't we go in?! I want to say bye to papa!” Kana wept, having to be held back by Dwyer and Leo outside the throne room in the castle. It was the date set to be Jakob's execution, and Garon had demanded that he himself was to be executioner, and that Dwyer and Kana were forbidden to enter the room until the punishment had been given.

Felicia was stood worriedly outside the room too, Camilla also present. “I… I don't believe that king Garon is going to kill Jakob… He… He meant so much to Corrin, and if it weren't for him… I would have been killed by now for messing everything up!”

“Now… I am sure that father could still have a change of heart...” Camilla whispered, before noticing something wrong. Something wrong with Kana. His arms seemed to be… deforming a slight bit. “Leo, Dwyer… Look out!”

Inside the throne room, the commotion from outside went unheard as Garon, Iago, and (against his will) Xander, were carrying out or observing the execution of Corrin's beloved. Xander longed to have Jakob be saved, but it all seemed as though it were too late.

Garon snarled as he rose from his throne, Bölverk firmly within his grasp. “Jakob… You were entrusted with protecting and caring for my daughter Corrin, were you not? Swore into taking an oath that you were to put your life before hers? Yes or no?” His voice seemed rather… calm… but his face did not match. “Answer me.”

Jakob winced as he felt the grasp of the Nohrian soldiers holding onto his restrained arms tighten, as a prompt for him to speak. “Yes, my lord...” He was back to staring at the ground as he had done a few days before now. Xander could tell that he had Corrin at the centre of his thoughts. Iago, however, could see how the butler's actions were prompting Xander into trying to see if he could find a way to delay the execution.

Flashing a smirk at the crown prince, Iago pulled out a tome and began shouting at Jakob. “Look at your king when he speaks to you, prisoner!”

Xander unsheathed Siegfried, as he had been told that he was to attend this event with this sword in particular, perhaps for if Garon declared that he himself was to carry out the execution. “Iago, silence! Father says what should or should not be done, not you!”

“Grr… _Thank you,_ Xander, but that was not necessary. I was about to request that Jakob do that anyway.”Garon then stood his weapon up before him, so that it was clearly in Jakob's line of sight. “Now… With your oath, may you please repeat the third and seventh clauses of it?”

Jakob's forehead was covered in sweat then. His mind was clouded over due to Corrin's death, it was hard for him to try and collect his thoughts. Much to the relief of the crown prince, he was able to do as Garon had demanded though. “The third… As a butler to a member of the royal family of Nohr, I am forbidden to allow them to put their lives at risk, whether it is intentional or not. I must make sure that if they are injured, I must have taken more wounds than them or heal theirs to show that I am fulfilling my duty…” Xander was aware of that, he had heard Laslow, Odin and Selena take similar such oaths when they became his, Leo's and Camilla's retainers respectively. But the other part which Jakob had been asked to say was unfamiliar. “And the seventh… I must not partake in any sort of non-professional, romantic relationship with the member of the royal family which I am assigned to...” Jakob was shaking. Never had he looked scared before…

Xander knew why now.

Garon now had a wide smirk on his face. “You failed to fulfil both of those clauses of your oath. Now, in the name of the late princess Corrin, and in the name of the sacred mystical dragon, Anankos… Jakob, former butler and retainer… I sentence you to death!” Jakob suddenly closed his eyes as Garon's axe rose, and was just as quickly brought down. However…

Just as the weapon was about to cleanly slice through Jakob's neck, the door was destroyed by a seemingly out of control creature – Kana. The room filled up with smoke as pieces of the door and walls flew around, and the voices of Dwyer, Felicia, Leo, and Camilla could be heard, yelling for the child to calm down.

Xander took that as an opportunity.

Upon the return to the Nohrian castle, and when Jakob was arrested for allowing Corrin to die, a mysterious blue object was confiscated from him. Jakob claimed that a mysterious woman with blue hair approached him as he reclaimed the object from near Corrin's corpse, and had explained that it was a dragonstone, meant to allow Corrin control over her dragon form. If that were true, it could be possible to give the stone to the dragon which was present somewhere in all of the smoke.

Garon had the stone set beside his throne at that moment in time, intending to use it as a tool against Jakob to make him break down if he had denied any of the charges which were being pressed. The smoke was a good enough cover for him to reclaim the stone.

It was also rather easy for Jakob to be found in the smoke, on account of his heavy breathing and utterances that he was still alive. The Nohrian soldiers holding onto him had fled once Kana had emerged, so it was rather easy to get hold of him too.

Xander still had Siegfried in his hand, and he frowned knowing that it was still coated in Corrin's blood. But at the same time… It was a slightly gruesome reminder that what he was going to do was for her sake. “Jakob. Hold your wrists out, and quickly.” The prince looked down at the man who was still sat upon the floor, and watched as he was shaking yet still did as he was told.

The legendary blade was then used to cut the ropes, before Xander knelt down. “Take the dragonstone, give it to your son as quickly as you can whilst there is still smoke and rubble being threw around. Then tell Camilla that I request that she takes you, Dwyer and Kana out of Nohrian territory _immediately._ If absolutely necessary, go to the Hoshidan capital and Corrin's blood siblings once she has left your company.”

“You… are going against king Garon's sentencing, lord Xander?...”

“Yes, but it is not to be spoke of. All that I shall say is that you were released by the guards who were meant to be holding onto you. I shall tell them to leave also, but not yet. Now go, before Iago realises that I have defied my father, Jakob. Escape, and keep yourself and your sons safe. For Corrin.”


	3. What Corrin would have wanted

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Nohrian royal family is slowly falling apart, Azura witnesses the unbelievable, Ryoma now has the beginnings of a plan, and Takumi makes a new ally.

“Selena, darling… I need you to cover for me and Beruka as we take Jakob and his sons away from here, okay?” Camilla smiled, petting her wyvern's head as she did so. “I want you to say, if Iago, father, or anyone else asks where I am, that I saw Jakob escaping, I went and gave chase, and took Beruka with me. Oh, and say that you are staying behind because I had ordered you to keep guard for if Jakob dared return. If they ask which direction I went in, please point them to the south, towards the ocean.” The Nohrian princess then laughed as Selena sighed before muttering the word 'fine' under her breath, and then she then turned around to her nephews.

Kana was now back in his human form, shaking a slight bit as he held onto the blue stone. Because it had been his first experience carrying out such a transformation, it was no surprise that he seemed rather lost. As a precaution, Camilla had ended up breaking the stone in half and giving Dwyer a part, just in case he ended up transforming at some point too.

“Father… What's going on?… Why are we having to leave? I just got used to being here...” Dwyer looked at his father, who was still in a slightly ran down state, but was more collected than he was twenty minutes previously. “I thought that grandfather was wanting to have you killed...”

Jakob tiredly looked at his son, before shaking his head as he rested his hand on Kana's shoulder. “Please… Wait until we have got away from here before asking questions, Dwyer… Maybe I can explain the situation over a cup of tea once we can rest.”

Camilla then got an idea. “How about I take you all to Izumo? It is neutral territory, and I believe that the archduke there welcomes any and all visitors from either nation. You could possibly go to Hoshido after that. I am sure that the Hoshidan royals would welcome your presence if you are Corrin's family...” Camilla sighed then, before gesturing her youngest nephew over to her. “Would you like to ride with me, little darling Kana?” She couldn't believe the similarities which this young boy had with her adoptive sister...

Before anyone else could do anything though, Selena quickly pulled her sword out. “Lady Camilla… I think that they have noticed that we are trying to help them escape!”

“What?!” Camilla looked up at the top of the castle walls, and then frowned as she noticed Garon stood there, Xander, Leo and Elise beside him.

The Nohrian king was _not_ amused. “My own daughter, a traitor to her kingdom… Not even you are exempt from my punishment, Camilla.” His hand rose in the air, and then a large group of archers appeared. “Daughter, I demand that you return with the prisoners now, or you shall be executed immediately.”

Leo quickly gave Camilla a gesture to go, and Elise gave a subtle nod as she noticed the gesture.

Quickly, the princess grabbed hold of Kana and Selena's arms and dragged them onto her wyvern, and Beruka did the same with Jakob and Dwyer. “Father, I am not having you do this. Has there not been enough suffering recently? Our dear Corrin would not have wanted this...” And then, she quickly held Kana close before flying away as fast as she could as the archers attempted to shoot them.

Her siblings all looked worriedly into the horizon then, as Garon spoke once more. “She is no daughter of mine. If she is ever to return to Windmire… Kill her on the spot. I should hope that the three of you shall not become traitors to your country, or else you shall be met with the same punishment as Camilla.”

-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-

Azura laughed quietly as she dipped her hand in a pool of water which was in the Astral Realm castle, happy to be on her own at that moment in time. Sakura and Takumi had ended up calling on Lilith once their group was outside the Hoshidan capital, and had ended up bringing everyone there – even Charlotte.

As she brought herself into sitting down and submerging her legs, she began to hum her cursed song, aware that as long as she was not singing the lyrics she would be safe. Then, she took hold of her pendant and closed her eyes. It was soothing to know that it was there, but not reassuring knowing that it could bring about her eventual death.

“Azura.” A familiar voice called out then, and it it prompted Azura into opening her eyes. The first thing which she ended up seeing was bare feet… Then grey and black armour… A blue cape… Wavy hair close to the colour white… And piercing red eyes. The deceased Corrin was stood at the opposite side of the body of water. The princess' grasp of her pendant grew much tighter, before she ended up shaking her head to see if it was just an illusion. “What's the matter? I just wanted to hear your song… Can't you sing it for me, Azura?...”

Corrin seemed to have a really eager look upon her face, so Azura ended up sighing as she released her pendant from her hand. “Only this once… Otherwise, I could end up causing myself too much pain...” And then, she closed her eyes as she began her song.

She had only sang up to ' _the path is yours to climb'_ when she re-opened her eyes, and sighed. Corrin was no longer there… A reminder that she was dead – not to return to anyone.

And then, a searing pain began to take over her body.

-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-

“Hinoka… Now that we know what Sakura and Takumi's plan is, we must make sure that if it does not work, we are fully prepared here in Hoshido. Garon could kill them, or try to use them against us.” Ryoma was currently in the middle of a training battle with his sister, and had just gone in to strike her. This was the only way in which his situation was similar to Xander though, with him using a different weapon to usual – he wasn't wanting to use Raijinto at that time because it was still coated in Corrin's blood, despite it being over a week since her death.

Hinoka quickly flew up to avoid his strike, before then going in to attack in retaliation. It was always good for her to spar with Ryoma, it helped her to see if she had became stronger than the previous times in which she had done so. Before her attack could make contact with him though, a figure appearing from out of nowhere beside Ryoma caught her by surprise, and that surprise made her end up falling off her pegasus.

It was Saizo, reporting on his recent searches of Hoshido for potential allies for if Nohr did end up causing a war. “Lord Ryoma, I have heard news which may be of interest.” He then looked at Hinoka as she shot a glare at him whilst she picked herself up from the ground. Ryoma nodded to the ninja, who then spoke once more. “I was near the Bottomless Canyon with Kagero, and there were a few Nohrian soldiers present there. We overheard some of their conversations. Apparently princess Camilla of Nohr has… been branded a traitor. She apparently assisted a man who was Lady Corrin's husband and butler escape an execution with her retainers and his children. There are orders to execute them on the spot if they are seen upon Nohrian territory.”

Hinoka took a moment to think, before gritting her teeth. “That was the woman who attacked me because I wanted to attack Corrin the other day...” She could clearly remember that… She did seem fiercely loyal to Corrin.

Ryoma's mind was on the other part of what Saizo had said though. “Corrin had a husband and children? No wonder her loyalties fell to Nohr when we forced her to decide...” If he could possibly get this husband, and depending on the ages of the children if they were like his own son, Shiro, to become Hoshido's allies…

Then Ryoma winced. Shiro… He had forgotten about him. Accidentally, of course. His and Kagero's son who was meant to be living in a deeprealm, and being cared for by chosen Hoshidan castle staff members… Without even being aware that he was a Hoshidan prince. All that Shiro was aware of was Ryoma's high status within Hoshido – not that he was currently in the highest possible position possible following Mikoto's death.

“Saizo… Track them down. Invite them here to the Hoshidan capital. Even this Camilla.”

-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-

“ _Nohrian scum! Release my sister and retainer now!”_ Sakura had been healing some of Hana's wounds after a battle which they had ended up in against the faceless at Fort Jinya. In the process of Sakura carrying this task out, a silver haired man in the armour of a Nohrian cavalier had approached them, and two soldiers who were accompanying him had grabbed them. Takumi, upon hearing the screams, went with Oboro, Hinata and Subaki to see what was going on, and now he was pointing Fujin Yumi directly at the man.

The cavalier remained absolutely silent as he approached the Hoshidan prince slowly, and whilst his men took a step back as they tightened their grasp of the hostages. Oboro and Hinata went to grab their weapons, but Subaki ended up stopping them. He wanted them to assist in attacking the two other soldiers.

Takumi remained silent for a moment as an arrow formed in his bow, and he straightened out his arm ready to shoot. The cavalier then did a surprising action, and dropped his lance upon the floor. “Shoot me. Shoot me for all that I care. I am not the one responsible for the two who are being held, those two did that on their own.” His hand ran through his strangely styled hair, before stopping right at the point of Takumi's arrow. “I said shoot me for all that I care, prince Takumi. The sooner that I can reunite with my best friend, the better.”

“ _Silas!_ Prince Xander ordered that you were not to do such an action! Garon will have _us_ executed if you do-!” The soldier holding onto Sakura tightened his grasp, making her start to choke a slight bit. If his grasp got any tighter, breathing would be close to impossible.

“Why do you think that I am allowing a Hoshidan prince to kill me then? No matter what, I'll be joining Corrin again soon.”

Upon mentioning Corrin's name though, Takumi's bow was lowered. This Nohrian soldier _knew_ his sister, and called her… his best friend? It _seemed_ a slight bit suspicious, but the wavering tone of his voice seemed as though it was genuine. “No,” Takumi then moved his bow to point at the soldier holding onto Hana, which was enough of a distraction for Oboro to hit the one holding Sakura over the head with her weapon. Subaki quickly took hold of Sakura's wrist following that, and pulled her away. “I probably knew Corrin for much less time than you, but I have a feeling that she wouldn't want anyone considered to be her best friend killed, especially by her brother.” Takumi released his arrow, and this Silas flinched as he noticed heard the sound of blood hitting the walls and floor. “If Corrin were here right now, demanding that Sakura and Hana were to be released, would you be stood before her sword, asking for her to kill you?”

“N- No-”

“Then why should _I?”_ Takumi then watched as Hinata assisted Hana away from the dead soldier, on account of her still unhealed injuries. “Look, I don't trust _a single_ Nohrian, but you seem to have been genuinely close to my sister. If I told you that we were going to do what we can to fulfil her dying wishes for peace, would you defect from Nohr?” Takumi was refusing to make eye contact with Silas, just as Sakura ended up running over to the two and holding onto the cavalier's arm, as if to encourage him to answer.

“I- Of course I would! I would never go against her wishes!”

“Then what makes this any different? She may be dead, but this is what she wants.”

Silas stared at Takumi for a moment, and then Sakura giggled quietly. “He's asking if you want to join us… It is obvious that you weren't co-operating with those other two, because by now he would have shot you if you were, big sister's friend or not.” She then laughed once more, before taking hold of Takumi's arm also. “And I bet that Corrin would be happy to see you work together...”


	4. Sorrow and bitterness

“Welcome to Izumo, princess Camilla!” A man claiming to be the archduke of the neutral kingdom was looking at the six who had just entered, and grinned. “Ooh, and you seem to have a lot of guests!”

“ _Former_ princess,” Camilla corrected, before noticing just how tired Jakob and his sons happened to be. Kana was having to lean on Dwyer, and Dwyer seemed to just be… himself. Jakob's eyes seemed heavy lidded and dark, presumably through days and days without sleep, worrying over his future. “This may seem abrupt, all six of us appearing out of the blue… But we need a refuge for a short while. My dear brother-in-law and his sons have been through a particularly turbulent time as of late, following the death of my beloved younger sister Corrin… They are in desperate need of rest. And then, me and my darling retainers have been branded as traitors in our own home, and we couldn't possibly return to Nohr...”

Izana looked over the group, before grinning. “Ah! If that is what you want! We allow any visitors from anywhere, so long as they don't breach our peace!” And then, he noticed the sword which Selena was wielding, and the axes belonging to Camilla and Beruka. “Sooo… You'll have to hand those over.”

A few hours later, the group had settled in rather nicely into Izumo's castle, which Izana was allowing them to reside in beside him for a single week. Whilst Camilla was currently in the hot springs, Selena and Beruka were tending to the two exhausted wyverns which had brought them there. Jakob was sat quietly drinking tea with his sons in a room which they were meant to sleep in, Kana holding onto a few flowers which he had found nearby which turned out to be some of Corrin's favourites.

Dwyer was staring at the cup of tea on a table in front of him, before taking a sip and wincing. “Father, this tea is terrible.” He stood up, and then noticed that Jakob's eyes looked vacant. “Father?” Normally, he would have got particularly annoyed over such a remark being made, but he just… wasn't reacting. “Father!”

Kana flinched at his brother's voice rising, before looking at Jakob and worrying. “Papa...” He held out one of the flowers for Jakob, and sighed when he took hold of it. “Papa, you always said that mama hated to see you upset, and I think that mama was right...” And then Kana sat down beside him and took hold of his own drink. Jakob snapped back to reality when he began spluttering.

“… I am sorry.” Jakob put one of his arms around Kana, before giving a sorry look to Dwyer. “I honestly thought that by now, I would be with her again...” He couldn't even bring himself around into saying 'your mother' or 'Corrin', he missed her that much. “I was prepared for my death, but I defied it.” And then, once Dwyer had sat down beside him also, Jakob pulled him over too. “The two of you are all that I have left.”

-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-

Elise was sat with her head upon a table, Xander beside her and Leo opposite. “It's just not the same without Camilla here… But why did she suddenly decide to help Jakob escape? I wasn't there when father was going to execute him, so...” She looked over at her brothers, before sighing. “I miss both of my big sisters...”

Xander rested his hand upon Elise's head, before looking around to make sure that no prying eyes or ears – namely Iago's – were nearby. “Camilla left because I told her to,” and then, he looked up at Leo. “Corrin said, when we forced her into deciding between Hoshido and Nohr… That something was not right with father. I ignored her, and it was a foolish mistake. I only witnessed this myself when he went to execute Jakob, as if he were truly the man he used to be, he would have at the very least allowed Kana and Dwyer to say their goodbyes, and would not have ordered me and Iago to stay inside the room. And he also wouldn't have ordered that somebody keep watch of his children at all times too, so that did not seem right.”

Leo looked up from his book, before sighing. “And he wouldn't have ordered for Camilla to be executed if she ever returns. You forgot that part too, brother.” It was barely a second before his eyes diverted back to the pages. “It may be possible for me to find a spell to allow you to contact Camilla, but I have a feeling that doing such a thing would put me under a similar threat and force me to leave Nohr too… And I would have to take Odin and Niles with me, and though that would make life easier for you all, it would be like the death sentence in its own way for me.”

The three siblings remained silent after that, the only sounds made being small sighs from Elise and pages being turned by Leo. Normally, Camilla would have come along at times like this and would likely have started doting over how cute the younger two were, but that was a far fetched dream now.

Xander was completely silent though, trying to think on what would be best to do to give the Hoshidans time to prepare against the invasion force which Garon had already formed. There were a few possibilities, but most of which were infeasible in the time which was available. Fortunately, he found an idea which could work after a good few minutes, and rose to his feet. “Elise, prepare yourself and your retainers, and ask Laslow and Peri to prepare too. Leo, you come with me before doing the same. We shall meet in the castle courtyard as soon as we are done.”

Leo stood up, slightly confused as Xander quickly walked out of the castle library. It took quite a lot of effort to keep up with him, and no matter how much he asked, no word was spoke from his older brother's mouth… Until they both reached the throne room. “We are going to retrieve Forrest and Siegbert.”

“What? Are you going crazy, Xander?!”

-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-

The small group led by Sakura and Takumi was slowly becoming something along the lines of a very small army, and a chaotic one at that. On top of the two of them, Azura was the other royal present in the group. There were the two Nohrians, Silas and Charlotte, the former being a member of the group by choice. Charlotte spent a lot of time trying to flirt, but whenever any flirting was returned, she would act as though she were scared, and said that she would be telling her husband once she meets up with him (with her neglecting to mention that the crown prince of Nohr was said husband). The retainers were often seen training together, with the pairings normally ending up with Subaki battling Oboro, and with Hana against Hinata. A ninja who was the twin brother of one of Ryoma's retainers, Kaze, was also a new addition to the group, having met up with them not too long after the hostage situation at the fort. There were a few others, but it was hard to keep track of everyone now.

“I bet that visiting Izumo would be a good idea… Despite everything which has been happening, it has been one of the few neutral kingdoms which have insisted upon remaining neutral...” Azura stated, looking over at the map. “And I have heard that because of that, people of both Hoshido and Nohr are able to go there without risk of attack… I believe that it could be possible to find new allies in our journey from both nations...”

Takumi raised an eyebrow, before sighing. “It's bad enough that there are two Nohrians amongst our ranks already-” A small sigh from Silas was heard, cutting the prince off from speaking any further. “Look, Nohrians are who took my sister, and left me growing up for my entire life with my family mourning over her. Do you _honestly_ think that now that you are one of us, I will instantly become your best friend or something? Oh wait, that's right. Your best friend, the very sister who led to my hatred of Nohrians, is dead.”

Silas looked as though he was about to yell at Takumi following those remarks, but Sakura yelling at them to stop made them both fall silent. “Takumi… Please don't use Corrin as a weapon… And Silas, don't let him get to you. He'll open up eventually.” Following that, Sakura looked over at Azura and yawned. “Please don't fight whilst I sleep, I am the only healer of our group so if either of you get hurt, I can't come straight away...”

It took a few minutes for the two left behind to even make any form of communication with one another, and even then, it was prompted by Silas dwelling on his memories of Corrin. “I almost got executed for trying to give her a few moments of freedom when I was twelve.” He stared at the map in front of them, before biting his lip. “King Garon had her kept under lock and key at the Northern Fortress in Nohr for her entire life. Her only company happened to be the four members of staff there, who also acted as her retainers… Her maids, Felicia and Flora; her knight, Gunter… And her butler, Jakob. I heard rumours whilst I was training as a knight in Nohr that she got along with them really well, Jakob more than anyone.”

Takumi remained silent, trying to figure out where he had heard such names before… Jakob did ring a bell or two… And it had something to do with… That's right. _Corrin had children with this Jakob person._ He could vaguely remember the child's drawing from that castle… ' _Mama Corrin, Papa Jakob'._ Damn those Nohrians, getting along with his sister better than he ever had the chance to…

Silas could feel the tension in the air once he had mentioned what Corrin's life in Nohr was like, so he decided that it would probably be best to go and get some sleep as Sakura had done.

“Tell me, Silas… What was my sister even like?”

-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-

“Weird… I remember being stabbed, and now...” Corrin could see herself stood on the battlefield once more, with everything going in slow motion around her. She had no control over her body, the only thing giving in to her whims being her eyes. Hinoka and Camilla were yelling at each other. Takumi and Leo attacking who they could. Elise cheering for her, Sakura in tears. Ryoma and Xander were locked in combat once more, intent on fighting to the death…

It was painful to witness these events once more. And speaking of painful… Her wounds from Siegfried and Raijinto were still there, gaping and bloody upon the pale skin of her stomach. Though she was dead, she seemed to be suffering from the pain of her wounds still.

Tears began to pour down her eyes as she then noticed that another version of her was also there, doing as she had done previously. All that Corrin wanted to do was scream at her to stop, and to find a way to settle the situation without sacrificing herself… No words left her mouth.

Before Corrin had to witness her own death though, she felt a warm, comforting hand upon her shoulder, who made her turn around and look at her. “Don't cry...” The arms pulled her into her chest, and Corrin began to cry as she regained movement of her arms. “I am here for you...”

“Mother… I'm really dead now, aren't I?...” She whimpered, feeling like a small child once more in Mikoto's arms. “I'm dead, and I've probably caused Xander and Ryoma so much pain because of it...” Feeling her mother's hand stroking over her bloodied hair was a feeling of reassurance which she couldn't remember from any point before that. Embracing Jakob had come close, but not to the extent of this.

Mikoto sighed, before holding onto her sobbing daughter's shoulders. “I have a feeling… That you might not be completely gone from your family yet, Corrin.”Her smile was so warm and radiant… No wonder the Hoshidans accepted her as queen. “Yukimura likely mentioned this not long after I had died that I had foreseen my own death.” Corrin nodded, remembering this conversation which had happened moments before she had obtained Yato. “What was also foreseen… A lost soul returning home. There were no specifics on as to who this person happened to be, or as to how they return… Perhaps it could be you.”

“But it might not...” Corrin wiped her tears with her wrists, noticing that there was dried blood on her arms. “It could be somebody completely unrelated...”

“It wouldn't hurt to have some hope, my precious daughter...”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I mean... At the end of the storylines, near the final battles... (Um. If you haven't completed Birthright/Conquest yet this may be kinda spoiler-ish?) You're pretty much dead, and then you see the people who died in the storyline? Then you come back? I'm considering something like that for this, but... I'm not too sure.  
> But hey. Some mother-daughter interaction between Corrin and Mikoto is good too~


	5. Other princes, old enemies.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Garon doesn't like Xander's request, and decides to make some secret alterations to it. At the same times, Ryoma's son is doing as he wishes, much to the shock of his mother, and the situation somewhat worsens in Izumo for Jakob and his family...

Leo did _not_ believe that his brother was trying to make him bring Forrest back to the castle. Well, bringing both Forrest _and_ Siegbert was quite a risk, considering what their father had been like as of late, but still… Why bring Forrest?

“And that is all that you are requesting?” Garon was giving his two sons a particularly suspicious look as they stood before him, with Leo scowling a slight bit and Xander keeping his straight face.

“Yes, father. If Camilla is truly a traitor, there is the possibility that she would try to make others turn. Siegbert and Forrest are unaware of the current goings on, and with Forrest being the son of one of her retainers, they could be at risk.” The younger of the two raised an eyebrow then, looking at him from the corner of his eye. _Using the fact that Beruka is Forrest's mother, and was now branded a traitor of Nohr…_ He supposed that it was sound reasoning.

Iago was not keen on the idea whatsoever. He _knew_ that Xander was behind Jakob escaping his execution, and having the disowned princess escape with him and those two 'dastardly boys', as he had previously called them. He wanted to have the remaining princes and princess kept in his sight at all times. “And what if Camilla has already tainted her siblings, and really they are using their sons as an excuse to go running off to her? King Garon, I would suggest not allowing your children to leave the castle until this threat is… extinguished.”

Garon was now frowning, and looked between the two once more. “I shall have to see what the great Anankos says about this.” Xander winced. Anankos… The very being which had he had declared the execution the other day in the name of… “Your retainers are to retrieve your sons, alongside some of my soldiers. The two of you and Elise are to remain within the castle.”

And then, once Xander and Leo gave their thanks, before leaving the room… Garon burst out laughing. “Iago… Make sure that the soldiers who accompany them know this… They are to kill the retainers and the young princes. Make it look as though they were attacked, and they were unfortunately lost in the fight.”

“Immediately, my lord...”

-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-

Hinoka was having to hold a hand in front of her face as she attempted to look around their current scenery. “This is the Wind Tribe...” She pushed some sand out of her face, before looking directly at Ryoma. “So, it is here we are going to look for help first?” It seemed rather… desolate to her. Not exactly a place which you would expect an entire tribe to be residing.

Ryoma nodded, before turning around to face Kagero. “I want you to relay a message back to Yukimura in the capital; Takumi on his way to the border with Nohr, and then to Saizo in his search for Camilla and her companions. Hinoka and I are now at the Wind Tribe, and are going to try and find some new allies. Once we have these companions, we shall head towards Izumo, which is where I heard that our siblings should be heading to next, and we shall be joining up with them. The capital is to remain in Yukimura's and Reina's hands for the time being.”

“Yes, Ryoma...” The ninja nodded before smiling at him, and then vanished. Though she may have been the high prince's wife, she was also his retainer, and more than willing to do anything which he asked. It was quite a task having to relay this message to three different people, but as long as she was able to make the journey without many distractions, then it wouldn't take up too much time.

Unfortunately, it was less than twenty minutes later that she ended up with quite a major distraction – a distraction named Shiro.

She had never expected her son to be walking out in the desert, fighting what looked like a particularly large group of faceless… He had been instructed not to leave his deeprealm unless she and Ryoma had explicitly requested it!

“Aha! That's one more down!” The young prince was grinning as he held his lance in his hand, watching as his enemy fell down to the ground before him. Shiro had never noticed that there was another one behind him though, he was primarily focussed upon what was directly in front.

Kagero frowned as she pulled out her shuriken, and quickly threw it at the faceless which had rose its fist, ready to crush her son. It thankfully hit it directly in its head, and sent it crashing backwards. The sound of it hitting the ground is what finally made him turn around.

“Huh? Who on earth did-? Oh!” Shiro had noticed that the ninja was stood there, staring at him particularly angrily. “Hi, mom! Thanks for the save!” The response frustrated Kagero more than anything.

“' _Hi mom, thanks for the save'_?! Shiro, you were in serious danger! What are you doing here? Why are you not in your deeprealm as both your father and I requested?!” She threw another shuriken at another nearby faceless, before sighing loudly. “Actually, forget that. You obviously must have your reasons, which I will ask about later. Once these enemies have been fought, I shall have to have a word with you...”

-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-

Kana was clinging onto his brother's arm as they were walking around the marketplaces of Izumo with Jakob, as an excuse to leave the castle for a short while. “Dwyer! Come on! Can you turn into a dragon too?!” He was _desperate_ to see if his brother was similar to him, but he kept refusing to try. Jakob was laughing for the first time in days at the bickering, finally feeling a slight bit more at ease.

Though he no longer had duties as a butler, his duties as a father were still calling for him. Besides, Corrin would have wanted for him to stay strong for their sons no matter what… Especially with them being hunted down by Nohr.

“Kana, please stop acting so childish… Even if I could turn into a dragon, I'm too tired at the moment.” Dwyer had to pull his brother off him, and it looked like quite the task because of how clingy Kana was being.

“Why not indulge your brother, little Lord Lazybones? He has barely seen you for his whole life, and surely that means that you should try to make an effort in spending time with him now that you are with him.” Jakob was able to smirk for the first time in weeks now, in reaction to having a glare shot at him. “I am sorry, did I strike a nerve, Dwyer?” His smirk grew bigger then. This was the most normal he had felt in quite a while…

Kana began laughing at his brother's exasperated mumbles, before then gasping and tugging at Jakob's arm as he pointed at a stall selling flowers. It was becoming more and more obvious with the slight obsession that the boy had over flowers, but Jakob knew that it couldn't be helped. Corrin sent him on an errand every few days to send Kana flowers, aware that a few months would have passed for the boy, and that led to Kana taking up the hobby of gardening. “Papa, can we go and look at them? Please?!”

As Jakob was then pulled away by his younger brother, Dwyer sighed and sat down upon a nearby bench. Kana had so much energy, but he didn't, though that may have been because Kana was still only twelve, and in his own rights, still a child. Dwyer continued to watch his father and brother for a few more minutes, before yawning. He decided that whilst the other two were still busy, he would take a quick nap for a few moments.

Just as his eyes began to close though, he noticed a small group of Nohrian mages appear from a side-street. He recognised them – they had been roaming around the castle in Nohr whilst he and Kana were there, and he knew that they were meant to have been monitoring them both. Dwyer could recall one of their names too… Zola.

“Oh great...” He had to put off his nap for now, just to warn everyone now. It couldn't have been a coincidence that they had all showed up here after Camilla had brought them all here to keep them safe. “Where is father and Kana?”

Zola then pointed, and a smirk was present on his face. Dwyer followed his finger, and noticed that he was pointing to his family, who were likely trying to meet with him once more as Kana was now holding a small bunch of flowers. And they were oblivious to the threat which was now pulling out tomes too, so that made it even better.

Jakob had never expected to see a large gush of water appear nearby, and have a dragon emerge in the middle of it. Kana was stood by his side, eyes wide in shock, so it was easy enough to figure out that the dragon was Dwyer. People nearby were screaming as they fled, and that frustrated him quite a lot… What had Dwyer got them into now?

Of course, when he noticed the dark magic attacks suddenly being hurled towards his feral son, it was easy enough to understand why. “Papa… What's going on?” Kana had now dropped the flowers, and was clinging onto his arm. “That's big brother, isn't it?”

_So much for no fighting being allowed in Izumo._

Jakob nodded, before he turned to face Kana and took hold of his shoulders. “If the worst does happen, you will also have to turn into a dragon and help Dwyer… I have no weapons, or any way to help him besides trying to heal. Those people are Nohrian mages, and-” A new voice from behind him had caught him by surprise by cutting him off mid-sentence.

“Ah! I knew it! They were sent here to hurt you all!” A dagger seemingly coated in ice flew at one of the mages, before somebody ran to beside Jakob. “Well… More like Flora knew it, but I knew that I was right to come when I did!” The person smiled at them, before handing a few daggers over to Jakob. “I kept dropping them on the way here… But at least they got here intact! You're going to need them, Jakob. More mages are on the way, King Garon is insisting on having you all brought back to Nohr dead, to set examples for the people who wish to flee or betray him… It’s kind of scary, but we’ll be doing this for Lady Corrin, right?”

Never had he been so relieved to see Felicia...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I've had this written out for days, and keep forgetting to post it...   
> At least I finally got around to it!  
>  ~~And also I quite like Leo and Beruka together. It seems rather underrated to me...~~


	6. Stay clear of enemies

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Oboro tries to drill it into Takumi's head that he is strong. Ice has began to cover over the entirety of Izumo. Siegbert is met by Laslow and Peri, just for everything to be flipped upside down...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Welp it has been a while since I updated this.  
> Anyway, I took my laptop into school today and I just wrote this chapter in my free (meant to be study) lessons. Nobody cared, because I looked like I was just doing computer science work. Pfft.

“The nation of Mokushu. They are meant to be allied with Hoshido, but recently, their daimyo, Kotaro, had been provoking Hoshidans into instigating combat with them.” Kaze explained, before turning towards Sakura. “I must warn you, princess… If they dare attack us during our passage, you are likely to become one of the first targets. They have not got much pride, and would not care if they attacked the healers of the group first. I would recommend you keeping your retainers by your side constantly.”

Hana and Subaki nodded at each other then, before taking their places at Sakura’s side to show that they would be there, ready to protect her. It was very reassuring for Kaze, knowing that the princess had such loyal retainers. He didn’t want the sweet little Hoshidan princess who brought smiles to so many faces (his own included) to end up injured or even killed.

As the group continued to plan, nearby, Takumi and Oboro were stood on lookout, making sure that none of the Mokushujin dared try to approach them. “We’re in the clear for now, Lord Takumi… I mean, if they even _did_ try to attack us, they would never be able to stand up against you!” Oboro laughed, leaning on the prince’s shoulder as she took hold of his arm.

“Gods, Oboro… You really think too much of me. If anything, you are the more skilled and powerful of the two of us...” Takumi looked down at his feet for a moment, before doing his best to free his arm in order to look over the Fujin Yumi to make sure that it was still in the best condition it could have been. “Most of my strength is just my-”

Almost instantly, Takumi was cut off by a very insistent cheer. “Is just you!” Oboro forced Takumi into turning around, before giving him a wide smile. “You’re strong, lord Takumi! Don’t ever tell yourself otherwise!” The retainer then took hold of his yumi, and pushed it down onto the ground. “Promise me that you will _never_ call yourself weak, understand? The next time that you do, I won’t hesitate to use force just to prove it!”

Takumi could only raise an eyebrow at that. “You’ll use force… To prove to me that I am strong? Oboro, I think that there is _some_ flaw in your logic.”

“Oh shush, lord Takumi. You’re strong, and that’s that.”

-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-

Snow was falling down to the ground faster than anyone could possibly comprehend, and the Nohrian mages behind the event held no remorse. The three who they had intended to either kill or bring back to Nohr as prisoners, alongside a new traitor, were caught in the middle of it, and hopefully would have been frozen once they had dealt with the archduke alongside Camilla and her retainers.

A rush of water went around the area, and was followed by a shrill scream as it quickly frozen. “Ah! It’s too cold, papa!” Kana had burst out crying, and had ended up reverting back into his human form at the same time as Dwyer. “It makes my legs hurt...” The small boy began to sniffle as he held onto his brother, before then falling to his knees. “I want to be at home… with blankets… with Mama and Papa and Dwyer...”

Jakob had to quickly run over to the two boys when he noticed that Dwyer had quickly followed Kana down to the ground, and he placed his hands on their shoulders to get them to look at him. “We are going to have to leave… I have heard of what is happening here before now.” Once he had finished speaking, Felicia had also ran over, and was looking to make sure that the three were safe whilst Jakob continued to speak. “A few years ago… King Garon forced most members of the Ice Tribe into working upon something which can only be described as an ice bomb. Those mages just used it. In a few minutes, Izumo will be encased completely in ice, and we shall be in a lot of trouble if we remain here. We’re going to have to leave… I don’t want either of you two hurt by those hunting us down.”

Felicia was shocked to see Jakob in tears then, embracing both of his sons. In a way, she had never seen Jakob so… human. He had always, from what she knew, been a strict, uptight man, with no loyalties other than that to Corrin. She had never been aware of Kana and Dwyer’s existence up until about two weeks before, just after Corrin’s death, so it was no wonder that he had suddenly become so attached to the boys. They were all that he had left of her.

“What… about aunt Camilla?...” Dwyer suddenly mumbled into his father’s sleeve, before slowly turning to face the castle in the distance. “Those mages… they went in her direction after they did this...”

“We have to leave without them...” Felicia then turned around, before helping Jakob to stand up and pull the shivering Kana onto his shoulders. “But I know that there is somewhere nearby that we can go! Iago had been watching over the movements of some of the Hoshidan royal family under king Garon’s orders recently… Prince Takumi and princess Sakura are just south, near Mokushu. They might accept us amongst them! They’ve got lord Xander’s wife and one of the new knights, you know, the boy who got banned from seeing Corrin a few years ago, with them too, so… it’s an option!”

 _Joining up with two of Corrin’s blood siblings…_ Jakob didn’t really know what to think of that plan. He only knew Corrin’s _adopted_ siblings. There would be almost no doubt that he would begin comparing Takumi to Leo, and Sakura to Elise, and there would be even less of a doubt that his sharp tongue would be cruel to them about it. He would probably cause more hostilities than there was already. Perhaps it would be safer if just Dwyer and Kana went…

Dwyer could read those thoughts easily enough as he stared at his father for a moment, and so he leaned closer to Jakob as he shivered, making it seem as though he was just seeking warmth (which he was) before whispering to him. “Kana is upset enough over mother… Don’t make him cry any more than he has done, father.”

-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-

“… Why could father not come himself?” A pair of eyes scanned over the group of people who were present, two of which he recognised, the remaining six being unfamiliar people. “And what is the necessity of it being requested that I travel to Nohr? Have I fell behind in my studies on Nohrian politics, and now father wishes to teach me himself just so that I do not fail, and become a disappointment to him?”

The grey haired man which he knew, Laslow, raised an eyebrow, before shaking his head. Xander’s son was a slight bit more pessimistic, but was much more dedicated than initially made out. “No, prince Siegbert! I believe that your father wishes to have you in his presence! He has not been able to visit you in months-”

“Years.” Siegbert found in necessary to point out the differences in the passage of time between Nohr and his deeprealm. What had been about four months for Xander had actually been four years for him.

“Well, it has been months for lord Xander. But also, Nohr is going through some… difficulties. Lady Corrin recently died a bloody, _bloody_ death at the hands of a Hoshidan prince, and lady Camilla… She has turned her back on Nohr, all through assisting lady Corrin’s husband and children in escaping Windmire against king Garon’s orders... There was going to be an execution for Jakob and _everything_!” Peri, of course, had to over-emphasise the details about the blood and the execution, but did fail to mention Xander’s involvement in Corrin’s death. If anything incriminating like that had come up before Garon’s guards, then the crown prince was likely to be cut down on the spot, and as would both herself and Laslow.

“Lord Xander had actually been speaking recently of visiting you also, just for brief respite from the recent goings on… Perhaps your grandfather decided that for a matter of safety, and for Xander’s sake, to have you brought to Nohr.”

“What, and after what had happened with that dragon kid which caused so much blood to be spilled-?!”

“ _Shush, Peri!”_ Laslow seemed desperate to not have Kana brought up before Siegbert, as he was not even aware of his cousin’s existence whatsoever.

Siegbert put on a very serious face, with a frown and slightly narrowed eyes, before turning to face his horse and resting his hand upon it. “I understand… I think. So, shall we have to leave for Nohr immediately?” Despite the fact that he seemed rather reluctant, due to his many duties which he had dedicated himself to carrying out there in his deeprealm, he couldn’t possibly pass up the extremely rare chance to meet his father, and stay with him at _his_ home, rather than here.

Laslow and Peri both exchanged a slightly worried glance at each other – a glance not missed by the soldiers sent by Garon to kill them both and Xander’s son – before turning to face the prince. “We must first meet up with Odin and Niles outside the deeprealms, they shall be with your cousin, prince Forrest.”

“But I am afraid that will not be the case, retainers.” One of the soldiers suddenly ran forward, holding an axe. “They shall not be waiting there. They will have been killed, under king Garon’s orders… Just as the three of you shall be soon!” The axe was then threw, and it seemed directed straight at Siegbert. The prince was caught by surprise at seeing it be threw, as were the two retainers, but he was quick to pull out a sword just to deflect it from its path.

Laslow pulled out his own sword, before holding his arm in front of the young prince. “What do you mean by that?! King Garon requested that we be _killed?!”_ Peri put on a wide grin as she took a firm grasp of her lance as he yelled.

“Yes… Both he and Iago could _smell_ the treachery present in prince Xander’s voice as he requested for prince Siegbert and prince Forrest’s presence in Nohr! He shall be dealt with soon… _After_ receiving the news of the _unfortunate_ deaths of his son and retainers at the hands of brigands, with us _poor_ soldiers barely scraping through after such a vicious attack!” a different soldier cried out, just as a flurry of arrows were then launched towards the three threatened with death.

Siegbert felt almost shook up by the events which were unfolding before him, watching as the people sent to retrieve him turned against each other – retainers versus soldiers.

Hushed voices were passed between the two who were defending, and the prince could hear them. “Peri, when I say to, take the prince and get him to Nohr. Get him to lord Xander quickly, and warn him that he and prince Leo are no longer safe in Windmire.”

“Awww, but- but Peri wants to fight, Laslow!”

“Peri, you and prince Siegbert have _horses._ I do not. This group do not. You two are guaranteed to escape. Now, go!” Laslow shot a glare at his companion, before standing in a position ready to fight. Peri still seemed reluctant, but sighed and gave in when she noticed that Siegbert was looking a slight bit panicked, having not dealt with a situation such as this before.

“Come on then… Maybe there will be some faceless for Peri to cut up on the way back!”

Siegbert didn’t like the sound of that. “ _Faceless?!_ What in the name of the gods are _faceless?!”_

Laslow was very frustrated, trying to keep the enemy soldiers away from the two who were still stood just behind him. “ **Peri! I said to go!** I’ll catch up! **”** He couldn’t help but feel nostalgic yelling that. He could remember his two friends who he had yelled that to at one point, before cutting a bridge once they had passed over it. He wondered as to how those two friends of his were coping too… “Gods, now is not the time to be remembering _that_ time...”


	7. Running away

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kagero and Shiro end up in a ~~bit~~ lot of trouble in Mokushu.  
>  Xander does something which pulls the Nohrian royal family apart even more.  
> Forrest, Odin, and Niles end up with a strange new companion...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> lmao what even is updating consistently-

“Mom!” Shiro froze when he noticed a group of people, presumably ninjas, emerge behind Kagero. “Look out!” The prince was quick to push his mother aside before pulling out his naginata and scowling as waves of shuriken shot past them both. One of them had managed to nick his sleeve, but nothing more.

Kagero took hold of her son’s wrist and pulled it down, before shaking her head. “We cannot fight. We must pass your father’s message on to your aunt and uncle as fast as possible – we have no time to waste.” She then went to rush away from the area towards some nearby trees with Shiro, but got stopped in her path by a shuriken flying past her face.

“Now… Where do you think you are going, Kagero?” A voice echoed around, and made the ninja quickly pull her son to behind her. “Because I think that you shouldn’t be going anywhere. You won’t be able to escape me either, as you have always been a sub-par ninja in comparison to me.”

Shiro was confused as to where the voice came from, and he just wanted to fight them. Of course, there was also the other ninjas who were there, and closing in on them both. His urge to fight became even worse when his weapon was wrenched from his hands and his wrists got taken hold of. He retaliated by elbowing the two holding onto him, but that resulted in even more of the enemy ninjas grabbing hold of him and forcing him onto his knees before getting kicked in the stomach.

The sound of Shiro suddenly wheezing and trying to catch his breath made Kagero turn around, and finally catch sight of the one she was looking for. “Kotaro… What is your purpose here? Why is my son in pain? What did you _do_?!”

“Hah, this weakling is your son? No wonder-!”

Out of frustration because of what he had been called, Shiro tried to break one of his arms free from those holding onto him. “I am not a weakling! My dad… My dad is some sort of big cheese in Hoshido! And he’s strong! Mom is too, so you can just shut up!”

Whilst Shiro was shouting, Kagero quickly went and threw her own shurikens to try and get them both out of the situation which they were stuck in. Unfortunately, it didn’t turn out exactly as she wanted it to, as her wrist was taken hold of before she was able to throw one of them.

At that moment, another ninja emerged, passing along a message. “Hoshidans have been sighted to the south. We’ve initiated combat with them, and definitely killed one. We have reason to believe that prince Takumi, princess Sakura, and princess Azura are amongst the group too.”

At hearing the names of his aunts and uncle, alongside their titles, Shiro’s eyes grew wide. He never realised that he was _royalty._ It seemed as though Kotaro reached that conclusion just as quickly, because of the smirk which he put on when looking at Kagero focussing on trying to free herself and her son, and at Shiro’s shock.

“Take these two and keep them locked away somewhere. I am sure that they will act as excellent leverage once I join the fray.”

-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-

“Leo! _Leo!_ We’ve got trouble!” Elise yelled, running over to her older brother in castle Krakenburg before grabbing hold of his arm. She looked scared and her eyes were welling with tears as she looked around. “Xander has gone missing! There was a note on his door for you, a- and I just- I’m just really worried about him!” The way in which she was crying onto his arm made Leo feel horrible, especially considering that it was never him who she went crying to.

“Sister,” He carefully pulled his arm free, and began tapping his foot, before he then turned around on his heel and started walking in the opposite direction that he had initially been walking in. “Come on. This note might have a reason behind his disappearance. Gods forbid he has left to find Camilla...”

Elise looked in confusion for a moment, wiping away her tears, before she then ran to catch up with him. She had always found it hard to have any sort of conversation with Leo, with it being made worse with the way that their family had began to drift apart. First Corrin, then Camilla, and now Xander… She couldn’t take it any more. She fell down to her knees, bawling as she tried to think of a time which the Nohrian royal family was whole.

She had never expected a few moments later to feel Leo holding onto her, resting his chin on her head. “Come on, Elise. I get that you feel lost without the others, but for now, it is just going to be you and me. We’ll get through this… somehow. I will think of something.” He rubbed his hand on her back for a moment, before holding onto her arms and making her look at him. “I may not be Xander or Camilla, nor have I been approachable as your older brother… But I will work to improve that with everything which is going on. I promise you that, Elise. Now, I had best get to that note before Iago catches sight of it, and takes it to Father, because I have a feeling that it has something to do with a plan of Xander’s.”

The assumption made by the Nohrian second prince about the letter’s contents was correct. It _was_ about the plan.

_Leo, I am writing this under the assumption that you, and only you, shall be reading this. I have something important which I need to tell you. Father is aware of my plan, and so, he is trying to do his best to sabotage it, and has possibly already succeeded to some part. I overheard Iago and Hans earlier, talking about how they had sent our retainers without us to fetch Siegbert and Forrest with some of Nohr’s strongest warriors as a death sentence. If any of them return alive, have them flee to the Northern Fortress_ _**immediately.** _ _I have one other person aware of my plan there, and she shall be waiting._

_Also, because of Father knowing of the plan… I have no choice but to leave. I have seen the official paperwork already, as Iago failed to conceal it from me. Father had already scheduled a date for me to have a public execution for treason against the crown, and he also had the same date written down for Camilla, Selena, Beruka, Jakob, Kana, and Dwyer. So I must leave, and make my presence in Nohr scarce for now. I shall not head towards Izumo though – Cyrkensia is where I intend to travel. Do not tell anyone, not even Elise._

_Speaking of Elise, please,_ _**please** _ _tell her that I love her, and that I shall be thinking of her. The same goes for you too, Leo. I shall miss you both dearly, just as I miss Camilla. Perhaps our paths shall cross one day, and we can be together as a family once more._

_Xander._

-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-

“Let me look at your injury, Niles!” Forrest frowned, taking hold of the arm belonging to his father’s retainer. “Whether you enjoy the pain or not, allowing the injury to become septic is much worse! How could you use a bow if that happened?!” The prince then pulled out his healing staff, and began to use magic to assist in the healing process.

Nearby, leaning against a tree, Odin was sat with his head in his hands, mumbling to himself plainly and simply – something which Niles had _never_ seen the dark mage do before. The words were impossible to make out too, which _definitely_ wasn’t how he would normally act.

Once there was a bandage wrapped around Niles’ arm, he walked over to Odin and prodded him in the head with his bow. “What is the matter with you? Get hammer to the back of the head or something?” Following that, Niles began grinning. “Are you in pain?”

“No.” Odin continued to remain out of character, and he frowned as he looked over to where he knew that Laslow had gone to find Siegbert in his deeprealm. “I want to know if the same thing happened with the others.” He then clenched his fists, annoyed that Garon’s soldiers had been able to trick them into thinking that retrieving Forrest was nothing but a simple errand rather than a plot to have them killed.

Forrest remained quiet as he looked between the two, before he started glancing between the nearby trees. “Are we… Waiting for somebody? Because I don’t hear _or_ see anything.”

“We are waiting for your cousin, and lord Xander’s retainers.” Odin’s voice remained emotionless as he continued to stare, before he then jumped up to his feet. “Birds over there are unsettled! That means only one thing… Laslow and Peri have returned from their mission of heroism, and have prince Siegbert by their side! Aha! The companions of Odin Dark are unstoppable!”

“And he’s back to normal...” Niles groaned, watching as Forrest’s face contorted in horror.

To the group’s surprise, it _wasn’t_ Peri, Laslow, and Siegbert who emerged from the woods. It was a person who didn’t exactly seem to look like a person in some ways. He had pointed ears the same colour as his hair, and what looked like a fox tail. His outfit was blue, and also seemed to have inspired by Hoshidan fashion.

Forrest recognised what this person was from some of the textbooks he had been made to read by his father. “A kitsune? In Nohr?”

“Huh?! Oh! I never noticed you all there!” The kitsune grinned, before rubbing behind one of his ears. “Yeah, I’m a kitsune! I’m Kaden, it’s nice to meet ya! And I’m here because I’ve been travelling, just… I don’t know where this is.”

“So you’re lost?” Niles asked rather bluntly, before noticing how Odin had fell back into a slump once more because of Laslow’s status still being unknown.

“Uh, no! I’m not lost! I just… need directions!”

“You know, Kaden… I might be able to give you directions to anywhere within Nohr and a few of the neighbouring nations if you help us out.” Forrest suddenly stated before Niles could get annoyed at the creature. “We are waiting for a few people – my cousin, and my uncle’s retainers. They should have arrived from the direction which you ran over from. By any chance… Did you see them?”

“Nope! I didn’t see anyone! But I guess that I could help you look for them, if you can help me find my way to a place called Cyrkensia! I _really_ want to see one of the performances done there!”

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Bloody hell this chapter seems short.   
> Especially considering that I've spent like two/three weeks trying to write this one.


End file.
